I鈥檝e found Clay is a bit different from Apollo/Instantly/Smartlead rather than simply better.
Clay is much stronger for enrichment, research, signals and building a custom workflow. Apollo is more convenient if you want data + sequencing in one place, while Instantly/Smartlead are more focused on sending and deliverability.
I鈥檓 actually building Followerscrape around the data/audience discovery side, so for me the interesting part is how you source the right prospects before they enter the sequencing tool.